


A New Life

by kinksock22



Series: New Life [1]
Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Bottom Jared, Claiming, Claiming Bites, Human to Alpha Jensen, Knotting, M/M, Marking, Mating, Mention of Heat, Non-con turning - by bite, Omega Jared, Possessive Jensen, RPS - Freeform, Rimming, Self-Lubrication, mention of MPREG, nonAU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-07
Updated: 2016-02-07
Packaged: 2018-05-18 18:46:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5939293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinksock22/pseuds/kinksock22
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fill for this prompt at the kink meme: <i>Jensen really shouldn't have walked home alone on Halloween night. He is attacked and bitten by a werewolf, but come morning he has only the vaguest memories of the attack - and a bite scar that wasn't there before. Soon the curse starts showing its effects: his senses are going haywire, he has to control instincts that are definitely not human and, worst of all, he's feeling increasingly protective and possessive of his best friend and co-star Jared. Every day is a battlefield. The best thing to do would be to keep away from him, unfortunately, his inner wolf violently disagrees and Jared seems troubled by something, even though he won't tell Jensen who or what it is - which really doesn't help with the whole protective issues. The troubling secret might be Jared having realized he loves Jensen - or maybe Jared is the werewolf (omega/beta) who turned him, only he was in a sort of frenzy: he knows he bit someone, but can't find him or her until their first shift. (please happy ending, only bottom!Jared and no submissive!Jensen)</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	A New Life

It’s no big, great, closely-guarded secret that werewolves actually exist.  
  
They’ve been around for centuries, as long as humans, and the two species live and work and interact together on a daily basis. Weres have evolved over the years, coming out of the woods and into modern society. While there are still packs, it isn’t the same as it once was; packs are more like human home towns where you grew up, extended family, not insular and all-encompassing as they once were.  
  
Jensen went to school with a few wolves back in Texas and there have been a few that have worked on the casts and crews on the shows that he’s been on. They’ve even got a few working on _Supernatural_.  
  
Jensen tries not to think of the irony of working on a show about the supernatural monsters that go bump in the night when there are in fact real-life werewolves that exist – the show goes in the complete opposite direction with wolves, real weres being nothing like what was shown in the episodes _Heart_ or _Bitten_.  
  
But there is some reality in fiction. Humans are occasionally bitten and turned. It’s rare but it does happen – usually the wolf that does the biting recognizes their mate in the human and can’t control the animal inside. Sometimes though it just happens because it happens, like anything else in life.  
  
So really, Jensen should fucking know better than to walk around at night, let alone on Halloween – it seems that even werewolves like a bit of irony.  
  
But his car breaks down a few blocks from home and he’s tired from a long day on set and Jared’s been acting weird for the last few weeks and he just wants to get home and collapse into bed. The last damn thing he wants to do is wait for a tow truck or for someone to get to him to pick him up and drive him the few blocks.  
  
Maybe it’s playing Dean Winchester for so long, maybe it’s his own natural bravado – he’s never been afraid of the wolves, never put much stock into the cautionary tales; the ones he’s met have all been nice, mostly human-like in fact – but whatever it is, he’s convinced that nothing will happen in the five minutes he’s outside, near midnight, all alone. On freaking Halloween.  
  
Or maybe he’s just convinced that if something _does_ happen, he’s badass enough to handle it.  
  
The hit to his right side comes completely out of the blue – he was only half a block away, he can see his damn house from here! – and it feels like being hit by a linebacker. Or a Mac truck. He rolls onto his back, fingers sinking into thick – but surprisingly soft – fur and looks up, passed the muzzle into intelligent eyes. The wolf is huge – he’s never actually seen one shifted in person before – much bigger than regular wolves and it’s hard in that moment to remember that there is a thinking, feeling being in there, being suppressed by the animal. He tries like hell to buck and fight but in the end he just isn’t strong enough. The wolf growls and dips its massive head, razor-sharp teeth clamping down on Jensen’s shoulder. Jensen screams – he can’t help it, it fucking _hurts_ – and the wolf pulls back almost immediately, ears flat against its huge head, whining softly in the back of its throat. Jensen would feel sorry for it if he wasn’t able to see the dark stain of his blood on the tawny fur and dripping down the long, sharp fangs.  
  
Jensen scrambles to his feet. To his surprise, the wolf backs off, hunching down, practically cowering. It looks nothing like the powerful creature that rammed into him and bit him, tearing into his shoulder. It looks for all the world like an abused dog, quivering in fear. Jensen stares into those sentient eyes for another moment – even though he knows he shouldn’t, that eye-contact is seen as a challenge – and swears for a split-second that they look familiar, he just can’t place them for the life of him.  
  
Finally getting his wits about him, he stumbles the rest of the way home. He strips naked and collapses on his bed, memories of the last few minutes already starting to fade as unconsciousness takes him over.  
  
***  
  
Jensen wakes up slowly, a terrible pounding in his head. He rolls over, trying to remember if he and Jared went out drinking last night – unlikely, Jared’s been acting weird and avoiding him as much as possible for weeks. It sure as shit _feels_ like a hangover though.  
  
Opening his eyes is much harder than it has any right to be and Jensen squints them mostly closed again when the bright, afternoon sun pierces through his skull like a knife.  
  
He sits straight up in bed, confused. A glance at the clock tells him that it’s three in the afternoon. He had to be on set at eight. And now that he’s actually awake, he realizes the pounding is actually coming from his front door. Jensen pushes himself out of bed – glancing down at himself and wondering briefly why he’s naked – and grabs a pair of sweats off the floor and pulls them on as he heads out of his bedroom.  
  
“Fuck,” he grumbles. “I’m comin’, damn.”  
  
He opens the door to a frantic Jared. “Jensen,” his best friend/co-star breathes, broad shoulders slumping as he leans against the doorframe.  
  
“Why didn’t you just use your key?” Jensen mutters, turning away to stumble into the kitchen, knowing that Jared will follow. Or well, he _used_ to know that Jared would follow. Now he’s not so sure.  
  
“You locked both locks,” Jared replies from behind him. Jensen frowns. He never does that. There really isn’t a reason to. It’s why he didn’t give Jared a key to the other, never-used lock.  
  
“Sorry, dude,” Jensen sighs, rubbing one hand over his face as he leans against the counter in the kitchen, watching the coffee maker, hoping like hell the power of his stare will make it work faster. It hasn’t worked in the past but Jensen is hopeful one day that will change. “Weird fuckin’ night, I guess.”  
  
Jared makes a weird, strangled noise in the back of his throat and Jensen looks up, eyebrow quirked when he finds Jared staring at his chest… No, his shoulder. Jensen looks down himself, shocked, bits and pieces of what he thought was merely a dream filtering through the haze surrounding his brain. Walking home. The wolf. Soft, tawny fur. The bite mark on his shoulder. He doesn’t really remember getting bit but maybe he did. Apparently he did, because he has the jagged, red-raw mark to prove it.  
  
“Jesus fuck,” Jensen sighs. This is really the last Goddamn thing he needs. He’s not sure what happens now, if he’s going to actually turn into a were. He shakes his head and looks back up at Jared. He’ll deal with later when he’s more awake and by himself. “Okay, so not a dream. What’re you doin’ here?”  
  
“What am I…” Jared sputters, blinking owlishly at him. “You were supposed to be at work _hours_ ago, Jensen,” he snaps. “Clif found your car a few blocks down and you weren’t answerin’ your phone or the door…” Jared trails off, shaking his head, the most helpless look in his eyes. Jensen wants so badly to erase that look. “We didn’t know what happened to you,” Jared finally continues, voice strained, gaze on the counter like he can’t meet Jensen’s eyes all of a sudden. “Everyone’s been worried sick.”  
  
“Fuck, man. I’m sorry. I guess this,” he shrugs his shoulder, surprised to not feel any pain; it sure _looks_ like it should hurt, “messed me up. I literally just woke up when you started pounding on the door.”  
  
“I’ve been here for an hour, Jensen,” Jared states quietly, glancing up at him through his lashes. “I’ve been alternating between callin’ and poundin’ on the door.”  
  
“I’m sorry, Jay,” Jensen repeats. “Believe me, the last thing I meant to do was worry you.”  
  
Jared nods and glances at him again quickly. “So, are you… Are you okay?” he damn-near whispers, gaze catching on the mark on Jensen’s shoulder again before looking away just as quickly. He can’t seem to settle his eyes on anything in particular and he’s more twitchy and jumpy than Jensen has ever seen him, even hyped up on massive amounts of sugar and caffeine.  
  
“I… Yeah,” Jensen answers honestly, surprising himself. Other than the hazy memory and some lingering tiredness –which coffee should fix right up – he feels fine.  
  
Jared manages to sit still for all of five more minutes before making some bullshit excuse about getting back to work. He mumbles that he’ll cover for Jensen, tell everyone that he’s sick and his phone had died. Jensen frowns as he watches Jared all but run out the door. Something is going on with him and Jensen damn-well intends to find out.  
  
After he figures out this wolf shit.  
  
***  
  
For the first few days, everything is normal. Other than the fact that the bite mark is healed the next morning, just leaving a deep, obvious scar. Jensen settles down and starts to think that maybe it wasn’t a turning bite, even if everything he’s read indicated that that’s exactly what it was.  
  
On the third day Jensen’s theory that he’s going to be okay goes to shit.  
  
All his senses are enhanced – he can _hear_ the beat of his own heart, can see and smell things that he shouldn’t be able to – and there’s a base urge in the back of his head to shift and run through the woods of Vancouver, to hunt small game, to preen and woo his mate.  
  
Then there’s Jared.  
  
Jensen has always been protective of Jared. He’s sort of like Dean in that respect – just not as obsessive and psychotic about it. But he finds himself growling whenever _anyone_ gets too close, his gums aching with the need to drop his fangs when someone touches Jared. And God help anyone who upsets Jared – Jensen has found himself mid-shift, even though he doesn’t know how to do that – several times during the week just from their director giving Jared notes on a scene. Jensen can _sense_ Jared’s unease and how upset it makes him to mess up, especially when he’s not trying to, and Jensen wants to rip the throat out of several people that he’s been friends with for years.  
  
He gets used to dealing with the heightened senses easily enough but his reactions to and concerning Jared never taper off. They get worse in fact. He’s not happy unless Jared is right next to him, close enough to touch, all times of the day. The nights are the worst. When Jensen has to _leave_ Jared and he can’t see him or smell him or touch him, can’t know that he’s okay and that all his attention is on Jensen and no one else.  
  
Jared’s acting even more sketchy than he has been in the weeks leading up to this point. He doesn’t protest Jensen demanding all his attention or hovering over him like a growling momma bear – or a pissed-off werewolf really – but he’s meek and timid in a way that Jared has _never_ been. He defers to Jensen in _everything_ , not even trying to make a choice or a decision for himself.  
  
And all that’s not to mention the strangeness of his scent.  
  
Jensen can smell who is human amongst the cast and crew and who is not. But Jared’s scent seems to elude him. He can’t quite get a grasp on it. All he knows is that there’s something about the scent – sweet like spun-sugar and fresh like spring rain – that speaks to something deep inside him.  
  
These heightened feelings aren’t really _new_ per se but they are troubling. And maybe Jared is being weird because Jensen is being weird. The best thing he could do for both their sakes is to stay away from him as much as he can. But even the _thought_ seems impossible.  
  
The whole being a werewolf thing, Jensen can deal with. The way he’s starting to feel about Jared, not so much.  
  
***  
  
One common misconception about real werewolves is the tie to the lunar cycle.  
  
Sure the urge to shift during a full moon is heightened but it’s not automatic. And it’s not isolated. Weres can shift anytime they want, at just a thought.  
  
Jensen hasn’t gotten there yet. He’s come close a few times – when he’s felt that Jared was threatened in some way – but there’s still a disconnect somewhere between his wolf and his human brain.  
  
The good news is that everything he’s read has indicated for turned wolves, the first shift is easier during the full moon. As a new wolf, he won’t be able to resist the call at first. Which is reassuring. Jensen never bothered to fret about being turned – wringing his hands and angsting about it wouldn’t change it so why bother? He’s embraced it as much as he can. It’s good to know that he’ll be able to get the shifting part down soon as well.  
  
But the bad news is that Jensen still hasn’t figured out what’s going on with Jared. And it’s driving him fucking crazy – he can’t help but think if things weren’t off with them, he’d have the concentration necessary to shift on his own, or at least be closer to figuring out the trigger.  
  
But with the full moon being tonight, Jensen doesn’t have the ability to worry too much about Jared – it’s actually the first time in weeks that he hasn’t been Jensen’s main thought and priority.  
  
He heads out into the Vancouver woods, strips down, and waits.  
  
The moon is full and bright overhead and Jensen feels a pull, an invisible thread that seems connected to every muscle and bone, the very core of who he is. His fangs drop and his body twists, bones and sinew breaking and realigning into a new form. Jensen closes his eyes and grits his teeth through it. It hurts, just for a few seconds, then Jensen reopens his eyes to a whole new world.  
  
If he thought his new enhanced senses were overwhelming in human form, that was nothing compared to how he feels now. He can hear, see, smell, taste _everything_.  
  
His ears twitch and he jerks his head to the side when he hears a low, almost mournful howl, tossing his head back and answering the call without thought – the sound startled him for a second until he realizes that it came from _him_. All he knows is that he _knows_ that howl, that it is love and home and he has to find it. _Now_.  
  
It takes a few seconds to learn to use his new body – coordinating four legs instead of two, dealing with a different center of gravity – but before he knows it, he looping through the woods at a fast run, following the pull of his heart that is stronger than the pull of the moon had been.  
  
He stops short when he comes up on a huge, tawny wolf. In that instant he knows three things with absolute certainty. This is the wolf that bit him. This wolf is Jared. And this wolf is _mate_.  
  
Jared lifts his head, hazel eyes the same even though he’s in wolf form. He whines and tucks his tail between his legs, his ears almost completely flat against his head, cowering down almost all the way on his belly. Jensen takes a few additional steps closer and stops again, nosing at Jared’s head. His tongue darts out before he thinks about it, licking at Jared’s muzzle. Jensen’s tail wags and he jerks in surprise, looking back at his own ass before turning back to Jared, who is watching him, hazel eyes glittering and Jensen just knows that if they were in human form Jared would be laughing at him.  
  
He hears himself growl – a playful sound instead of a warning – and drops his chest down, once again butting his head against Jared’s. Jensen catches sight of his own front legs – his fur is mostly snow-white with a few spot of tan; can’t even get rid of the freaking freckles even as a damn werewolf – but most of his attention is focused on Jared. His best friend is still watching him carefully but he’s at least not cowering anymore.  
  
Jensen growls again and bounces forward, nipping playfully at Jared’s front paws. He can’t explain it but he just wants Jared to stop looking like that, to stop smelling like that, and run and play with him. Jared perks his head up, tilting it to the side – much like he does in his human form – and Jensen’s tongue lolls out, giving Jared his best wolfy grin.  
  
As he takes off at a dead run, he knows Jared is following. They run and play, butting up against each other, nipping at paws and tails, rolling in the dry, dead leaves for hours. Jensen doesn’t think about the fact that Jared has essentially lied to him – to a lot of people probably – for nearly ten years. He doesn’t think about the fact that Jared is the one that bit him and doesn’t ask why. All that can be dealt with when the sun comes up.  
  
***  
  
Jensen wakes up still in his fur. The sun is shining and he’s wrapped around warm, bare flesh. He looks up into Jared’s hazel eyes, into his human face, and everything from the night before comes rushing back, all the things that he hadn’t let himself deal with or think about.  
  
Jared looks scared to death – not of Jensen, not because he’s freaking cuddling with a gigantic wolf because Jared’s one himself – but still scared of him. His scent is wrong and Jensen huffs out a noise through his nose, pawing at his own muzzle. He can’t pinpoint the scent but it’s sharp and acrid and Jensen doesn’t like it, doesn’t like that Jared smells that way.  
  
He whines and nuzzles under Jared’s chin, tongue darting out to lick his face. He preens when Jared laughs softly, big hands gently grabbing the sides of Jensen’s face to hold him back. “Easy, dude. That’s cool when we’re both shifted but not so much at the moment. ‘s freaking worse than Sadie drooling all over me.” Jensen snarls and growls softly. He doesn’t appreciate being compared to a freaking dog, no matter how much he loves Sadie. “You know what I mean, Jen,” Jared replies softly.  
  
Long fingers dig into the fur on the sides of Jensen’s face, up over his ears, and his tongue lolls out, a content sigh huffing out between them. They need to talk, badly, but Jensen kind of doesn’t want Jared to stop petting him, like ever.  
  
Jared gives him a few more moments before the gentle but firm scratching stops and Jensen looks up at him, whining again. The _look_ and the _smell_ is back.  
  
“I know you have questions,” Jared murmurs. “And there’s so much I need to tell you. Which I could do like this, but I’d rather be able to actually have a two-sided conversation.” So far, that’s really the only downside that Jensen can see, the inability to communicate with words while they’re both shifted. Sure, emotions are there and are actually stronger, and their ability to silently communicate as humans so well transferred into being able to as wolves. But Jensen gets what Jared means.  
  
He tries. He really does. But he can’t get back.  
  
He panics, pawing at Jared’s chest, whining pitifully. Jared grabs his face again, focusing his eyes on Jared’s. “Jen, stop,” Jared urges softly. “You have to calm down. I can walk you through it, okay? But you have to be calm.” Jensen inhales deeply and focuses all his attention on Jared – it’s not hard, he’s been doing it for weeks, years if he wants to be truly honest with himself. “That’s it,” Jared smiles. “I know it sounds simple and kinda silly but all you have to do is think about your human self.”  
  
Jensen does. He thinks about his hands and arms and legs, thinks about not having a tail or fur, thinks about having the ability to once again actually _speak_ to Jared. His bones shift and realign again – less painful than the first time, he hopes that’s a sign that it’ll keep getting easier – and when he reopens his eyes, he’s sitting naked on the forest floor, legs tangled with Jared’s, Jared’s hands still cupping his face.  
  
“You did it,” Jared whispers, smiling proudly.  
  
“What the hell, Jared?” Jensen asks immediately, tone hoarse. Jared flinches, that thick, acrid, _not right_ scent sharpening. Jensen realizes that it’s fear. He sighs, his shoulders slumping. “I’m not mad,” he assures Jared. “I’m just… confused? I guess. I just. I need answers, Jay. I think you owe me that much.”  
  
Jared nods, finally dropping his hands. He pulls away completely, bends his legs and pulls his knees to his chest. Jensen tries really, really hard to not focus on the fact that they’re both still naked. Long arms wrap around Jared’s legs and he blinks at Jensen for a few second before starting quietly.  
  
“I was born a wolf. My whole family is, going back generations to when San Antonio was a pack as well, not just a city. I presented as omega when I turned sixteen,” he pauses, head tilting and Jensen remembers him doing the same thing in his wolf form, “I assume you read about genders?” he asks. Jensen merely nods, not wanting to risk speaking and have Jared stop when he’s just starting to explain. Jared nods in return. “Okay, that’s good. I don’t really wanna have to worry about giving a sex-ed and anatomy of the wolf lesson as well.” Jensen rolls his eyes and waves one hand. “Yeah, sorry. Okay, so when I graduated and decided to come to Hollywood, my parents put me on suppressants. Of course, they’re meant to stop an omega, or a beta, from having heats but the side effect is that it also kinda dulls my other senses as well, even in my fur.  
  
“I lied to everyone. The meds dulled my scent as well,” well, that explains why Jensen couldn’t get a read on him, “and passed myself off as human ever since.” He takes a deep breath and tilts his head back, looking up at the sky. “Another side effect is that the meds keep me from being able to sense my mate. And the actual downside to them is that they only last for ten, fifteen years. Which I, nor my parents knew.”  
  
He pauses again and looks at Jensen. “My behavior before Halloween, that was because my suppressants stopped working. I was feeling _everything_ for the first time since I was seventeen. And I also realized that I’d found my mate. And I’d been denied being with him for almost ten years.” Jared’s voice is so soft, so sad, that it makes Jensen ache. For the last few weeks, he’s had the overwhelming urge to tear apart anyone who hurt Jared and now Jared is hurting so badly and there’s nothing he can do.  
  
“It’s such a damn cliché,” Jared continues, huffing out a humorless laugh, “but Halloween affects us worse than the full moon. Supernatural creatures and all,” he shrugs. “I couldn’t stop myself from shifting that night. And I just ran and I didn’t realize that I was running toward you until I caught your scent. I was in a haze, Jensen. And I didn’t realize what I’d done until I tasted your blood.” Jared’s voice cracks and he drops his head, burying his face in his knees. “I’m so sorry,” he adds miserably.  
  
Jensen crawls toward Jared, pulling his arms and legs down then pulls him into his arms, against his chest. “I’m not mad,” Jensen repeats. “Like I said, I just wanted answers. And now everything makes so much more sense. So thank you for that.”  
  
“I’d do anything for you, Jen,” Jared whispers against his neck. Jensen can feel the warmth of tears, can smell the salt and the stink of fear still but beneath it all, he can smell that spun-sugar, fresh scent that he knows is Jared, is _mate_. “Did you mean it?”  
  
“What?” Jared asks softly.  
  
“The mates part?”  
  
Jared snorts and pulls back enough to look at him. “Weres mate for life, Jensen,” he explains. Jensen had read that. “It’s not something that any wolf would ever joke or kid about.”  
  
“Okay,” Jensen nods. Then dips down and presses a kiss to Jared’s lips.  
  
If Jensen wants to be honest, he’s been in love with Jared since the beginning. He’s pushed it down, hidden it and denied it but he can’t anymore. Especially not now.  
  
Jared makes a soft, confused noise in the back of his throat and pulls away, hazel eyes wide and still glassy with tears. “You don’t…”  
  
“Hey, shh,” Jensen smiles softly. “I know I don’t. But I want to. I’ve always wanted to. I just didn’t want to risk what we already had. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Jay. And I was terrified to fuck that up. Now, I don’t have to worry about fucking it up. We’re mates,” he shrugs, grinning at Jared.  
  
“You’re taking this really well,” Jared states.  
  
“Well, I mean, what good would wringing my hands do? I can’t change it, I wouldn’t even if I could, honestly. Bein’ a were ain’t so bad. And bonus? I get you outta the deal. Pretty sweet if you ask me.” Jared opens his lips, no doubt to argue or dissect or talk this to death – he’s surprisingly like Sam in that regard – but Jensen shakes his head and presses a finger to his lips. “Here’s what’s gonna happen,” Jensen states. “We’re gonna find my car and head home. Get some breakfast ‘cause I’m freakin’ _starving_ …”  
  
“It’s ‘cause you shifted,” Jared interrupts softly. “For the first couple’a times, it’ll be that way. You’ll also actually eat more in general now. We have higher metabolisms and need more calories than humans.”  
  
“Dude, that explains _so_ much,” Jensen chuckles. “Okay, so food. Then we’re gonna take a shower ‘cause I have dirt in places I don’t wanna think about. Then we’re gonna do something about this whole mates thing. Got it?”  
  
Jared blinks owlishly for a second then nods. “God,” he groans. “You’re gonna be even more bossy than usual.”  
  
“Yeah, about that,” Jensen frowns. “What’s been up with me? The growliness and the overprotectiveness and shit?”  
  
“You’re alpha,” Jared whispers, smiling shyly. “More so, you’re _my_ alpha. So yeah, that’s why.”  
  
Jensen hums thoughtfully then nods. “I like it,” he states simply before getting up, reaching down to pull Jared to his feet as well.  
  
***  
  
The drive back to Jensen’s doesn’t take long.  
  
Jared spends the time quiet in the passenger’s seat, quieter than Jensen has ever seen him, more still. It is slightly unnerving but in the same sense he can tell that Jared is at peace. Finally. He sort of gets it. He’d only been a wolf for a few weeks, and already he couldn’t imagine pushing it down, suppressing it, for as long as Jared was forced to.  
  
He thinks on the drive. He’s not sure what happens next, whether or not they’re going to come out as wolves and/or as mates, if Jared plans to go back on the suppressants, if he even can. Jensen has never been good with not knowing things, it unsettles him, and it’s even worse when it comes to not knowing things about Jared. But what he does know with utmost clarity is that _whatever_ happens, they’re in it together. That eases something inside him that he hadn’t even known was uneasy.  
  
Jared wasn’t kidding about the food thing.  
  
They settle in Jensen’s kitchen and eat nearly everything in his fridge and the cabinets. He eats so much food it’s kind of ridiculous – for the first time _ever_ he eats more than Jared – and he kind of thinks that he could actually eat more. But the longer he sits there, Jared’s scent so close, so strong, the heat of his body _right there_ – no wonder Jared always ran hotter than any one Jensen ever knew; everything is starting to make so much more sense now and he feels kind of stupid for not seeing all the obvious signs – the more another type of hunger makes itself known.  
  
There’s a warm, spicy scent that permeates the air – a scent that mixes pleasantly with Jared’s – and Jared makes a soft noise in the back of his throat, his cheeks and chest flushing. Jensen looks to him, confused.  
  
“You said something about a shower,” Jared states suddenly, tone almost sounding choked.  
  
At Jared’s reminder, Jensen’s focus is once again shifted to the dirt, grit and grime he can feel. “Yeah,” he wrinkles his nose, pushing away from the table. “Good idea. C’mon.”  
  
Jensen grabs Jared’s wrist and pulls him up, tugging him down the hallway toward the bathroom. Jared’s always been just a little bit stronger than him before and the fact that he can drag Jared around and manhandle him makes his chest puff up with pride. It just feels _right_.  
  
They get into the bathroom before Jared manages to jerk his wrist free. “You don’t… You wanna…” he stammers, eyes wide.  
  
Jensen turns on the water and shakes his head, snorting out a laugh. “Dude, you spent the night, same as me, in the woods. Save time and water doin’ it together.”  
  
“Yeah but…” Jared trails off, the blush deepening.  
  
“In case you haven’t noticed, Jay, we’re still naked,” Jensen points out. Jared startles, like he’d honestly forgotten or hadn’t noticed. He’s adorable. “And we’re mates right? So what’s the big deal?”  
  
Jared’s shoulders slump and he nods. “I know. I just… I’m so used to not acting on things, to not even feeling them. It’s almost like I’m newly turned myself sometimes.”  
  
“’s just a shower, Jare,” Jensen replies softly.  
  
Jared flashes him a smile and climbs into the shower behind Jensen. The water feels _so_ good – even his sense of touch has been enhanced, things feeling softer, better, more real somehow – and Jensen groans. Jared’s huddled against the back wall, not even in the spray, staring at the water swirling around the drain. Jensen frowns, his instinct to take care of Jared taking over once again and he finds himself pulling his mate – ain’t _that_ a trip to think about – under the water. He grabs the soap and a wash cloth and sets about cleaning Jared up. Jared is pliant beneath his hands and Jensen freaking _loves_ it. He can totally get used to this alpha wolf thing. And it seems that taking care of his mate isn’t going to be that hard to get used to either. He’s already been taking care of Jared in a lot of ways over the last ten years.  
  
Jared even lets Jensen wash his hair. Jensen kind of has the urge to purr in contentment. That warm, spicy smell is back and Jared’s sweet scent is stronger than ever. It takes Jensen longer than it probably should to realize that the new scent is coming from _him_ , is the scent of his arousal.  
  
Jensen’s hands stop moving and Jared looks up at him, his Adam’s apple bobbing when he swallows. He’s starving again, ravenous, but for Jared this time instead of food.  
  
He grits his teeth so hard his jaw aches and rushes through cleaning himself off before ushering them both out of the shower. He half-heartedly dries Jared then himself, feeling like he’s going to explode if he doesn’t do _something_ and do it soon.  
  
Jared whimpers when Jensen grabs his hips and backs him out of the bathroom and into his bedroom. The sound seems to be wired directly to Jensen’s cock. He’s harder than he ever remembers being but there’s a few things he needs to know before they go too far and he doesn’t have the control to talk.  
  
“There are things that weren’t in the books I read,” Jensen rasps, voice deep and gritty, almost not even sounding like himself.  
  
“I’ll answer whatever I can,” Jared replies softly.  
  
Jensen is suddenly fiercely glad that he’s never really been shy about sex and communicating with his lovers. “I couldn’t find out much about heats,” he states. “And there was nothing about suppressants.”  
  
Jared licks his lips and nods, cheeks still flushed. “Without the meds, I would’ve went into heat twice a year. Every omega has a certain cycle and thankfully my sups failed a few months before I’m due to have one. Most omegas are fertile,” Jared adds, cheeks pinking up even more. “But only during heats.”  
  
“Okay, so we still have a month or so to worry about you going into heat. And the possibility that I could get you pregnant.” Jensen can’t really believe they’re talking about this. God, pregnant. He knows deep down he wants that but now is definitely not the best time. “Alright. Can you go back on the meds?”  
  
“I can but it might mess with my cycles, with my fertility. I mean, I’d do it if you want me to…”  
  
“Jared, no,” Jensen cuts him off, shaking his head with a frown. “I don’t wanna risk your health or your ability to have kids. I mean, now isn’t a good time but it is something I’d want down the road, so long as you do.”  
  
“I’m kinda hard-wired to want that, Jen,” Jared admits sheepishly, ducking his head shyly. “Almost all omegas are nurturing and want pups.”  
  
“Okay, so that’s something we’ll deal with after the show. Or whenever. Is there birth control?”  
  
“Yeah,” Jared nods. “And it doesn’t affect my heats.”  
  
“So we’ll do that,” Jensen concludes.  
  
Jared smiles and leans slightly into Jensen’s touch, their chests brushing together. “Okay,” he agrees. “Was there anything else?”  
  
“Yeah, the whole knotting thing…” Jared’s cheeks turn nearly scarlet and he ducks his head again, almost whimpering. “The books didn’t really give much detail,” Jensen goes on, shrugging apologetically. He knows that this is embarrassing and uncomfortable for his mate but he needs to know these things. “Also the claiming part.”  
  
Jared sighs softly and pulls away from Jensen, moving to sit down the on edge of the bed. Jensen follows immediately, unhappy with not having Jared within touching distance. While he doesn’t necessarily mind it, he kind of hopes that the compulsion at least wanes a bit.  
  
“As an alpha, you have a knot, in both forms,” Jared explains. He huffs out a quiet laugh – Jensen loves that sound – and leans against Jensen’s shoulder. “Guess ‘mma end up havin’ to give that sex-ed lecture and anatomy lesson after all, huh?”  
  
Jensen turns his head and presses a kiss to Jared’s temple. “I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he murmurs. “I just don’t wanna fuck somethin’ up.”  
  
“It’s nature, Jen,” Jared replies softly. “It’s _your_ nature now, if you follow your instincts, mostly you’ll know what to do.”  
  
“Still,” Jensen sighs. “I don’t wanna risk hurting you either.”  
  
“Okay,” Jared echoes his sigh. “That’s part of your natural instinct by the way, the need to protect your mate and to be possessive of them.”  
  
“Does that even fade?”  
  
“Some, or at least becomes manageable. Right now your reaction is so strong because you haven’t officially claimed me. Once that happens, it’ll settle. But you’ll still be more growly and tactile than you used to be.” Jensen slides his arm around Jared’s waist – speaking of being tactile – and nuzzles against his neck, unable to get enough of that soft, sweet scent. “As an omega,” Jared continues, voice slightly strained. God he smells so _good_. “I’m literally built to take a knot…” Jensen’s low growl cuts him off. “Your knot, Jen,” he amends. “Only mates knot, babe.”  
  
“Good,” Jensen growls again.  
  
“Possessive bastard,” Jared teases fondly, leaning into Jensen’s side, turning into his touch, their lips sliding together.  
  
“Get used to it,” Jensen drawls into the kiss.  
  
“I already love it,” Jared answers softly, breathlessly. “We don’t have to knot every time we have sex, you can hold it back.” Jensen makes a confused noise in the back of his throat. “It’s… lengthy,” Jared adds. “And can be messy. Sometimes it just isn’t practical. You’ll gain control of yourself and that new part of you just like you will eventually with the shifting. Remember, you just have to listen to your instincts.”  
  
“And what about claiming?” Jensen pushes. He wants this conversation to be over with. All this talking about sex and knotting has got his blood burning in his veins. “Assumin’ you want that.”  
  
“Of course I want it, Jensen,” Jared replies quickly. “I mean, I turned you without your consent. I was so far gone in that haze, I needed you so much, that I couldn’t even talk to you about it. I just took…”  
  
“Easy,” Jensen murmurs when Jared starts to obviously get upset. He can not only hear it in his voice but smell it in his scent. Jensen doesn’t like when Jared’s soft, sweet, fresh scent changes. It upsets him and his wolf. “It’s okay, Jared. I told you, it’s okay. I’m not mad. I’m happy about it.”  
  
“Promise?” Jared whispers, pulling his head back enough to look up at Jensen.  
  
“Of course, sweetheart.”  
  
“Okay,” Jared sighs. “So, with claiming. We’ll have sex,” Jensen can feel the heat of embarrassment pouring off Jared’s skin and prickling along his senses, “and then once you tie us together, you’ll bite me.”  
  
Something dark and primal flutters in Jensen’s stomach, nearly purring in satisfaction, his wolf side demanding that he flip Jared over and do it _now_. It clashes hard with the need to recoil, the thought of hurting Jared making him sick. “What? No. Jared, I can’t. I don’t wanna hurt you.”  
  
Jared smiles and turns toward him more, wrapping his arms around Jensen’s waist. “It’s not pain, Jensen,” he whispers and Jensen gets a whiff of the spike in his scent. “It’s actually pure pleasure from what I’ve heard from mated pairs before. And it’ll complete our bond. There will be no doubt who I belong to.” Jensen growls softly and leans forward, burying his face in Jared’s neck, mouthing wetly at the crook of his shoulder. Jared moans and tilts his head, barring his throat in complete submission. “That’s it, babe,” he encourages, soft and breathy. “Your instinct is already guiding you. Listen to it, to your wolf.”  
  
Jensen pulls away and grabs the sides of Jared’s face, kissing him wet and messy, nearly brutal. Jared moans and opens up to him, sweetly pliant. The thought of big, tall, strong Jared submitting to him so easily is heady and Jensen pushes to deepen the kiss even more, exploring every inch of his mate’s perfect, sometimes smartass mouth. He tastes just as sweet as he smells and Jensen needs more.  
  
He pulls away reluctantly, mouthing down Jared’s jaw to his neck, down to his collarbones. Jared moans and writhes beneath him, arching his back. Jensen can’t stop, doesn’t know what to touch first, wanting it all and wanting it right this second. Jared goes easy when Jensen lays him back onto the mattress. But then his mate flips onto his belly, pushing up onto his hands and knees, flashing a look at Jensen over his shoulder.  
  
Jensen doesn’t miss the need and want in those dark, ever-changing hazel eyes. There’s no way he can stand to deny Jared another second.  
  
He crawls between Jared’s legs, palms sliding over the globes of Jared’s perky, perfect ass. He pulls the cheeks apart, curious when he sees wetness. He slides one finger over Jared’s hole – Jared jerks and moans harshly – and Jensen watches in fascination as Jared gets even wetter, a pulse of the slippery-wet liquid oozing from the puckered rim. Omegas where only mentioned briefly in his reading – they are apparently pretty rare, especially male omegas – but suddenly Jensen remembers reading about the fact that they self-lubricate.  
  
“Jesus fuck,” he whispers.  
  
He swirls his finger around Jared’s rim again, the muscle loosening beneath his touch. Jared’s scent is so much stronger here and Jensen leans forward, suddenly, desperately, needing to taste. Sweetness bursts across his tongue, Jared’s natural lube thick and plentiful. It’s like ambrosia and Jensen can’t get enough. He buries his face in Jared’s ass, licking and sucking, hands clamping down hard on Jared’s hips when he starts to squirm.  
  
“Oh God, Jensen,” Jared whines, fighting against Jensen’s hold, trying to push back. “So good. God, need more. Please, Alpha…”  
  
Jensen’s whole body shivers at that. He pulls away after one last lick. “Fuck,” he rasps. “Taste so good, Jared.” His hands slide over the swell of Jared’s ass, over his hips and up his flanks.  
  
“C’mon, please, Jen,” Jared begs, tilting his hips up, ass high in the air. “’m ready. Want you.”  
  
“Need to open you up, baby,” Jensen murmurs. “Don’t wanna hurt you.”  
  
“Remember when I said I’m literally made to take a knot?” Jared pants, looking at Jensen over his shoulder. “I wasn’t kidding. Or exaggerating. I really don’t need prep. My muscles are already loosening, ready to take you.” Jared pushes up and twists around, kissing Jensen, licking his own slick from Jensen’s lips. “Please, Jen. I just need you.”  
  
_Need_.  
  
That is the magic word.  
  
Jensen pushes himself up onto his knees fully, one hand gripping Jared’s hip, the other lining himself up. Sinking into Jared is by far the most amazing thing Jensen has ever felt in his entire life. The slick heat is still tight but his muscles and inner walls open around Jensen as he slowly pushes all the way inside. Jared moans through it, head hanging down between his shoulders, his back heaving, skin flushed with pleasure and slick with sweat.  
  
“Fuck, Jay,” Jensen grits out, unable to move, to breathe, to _think_ for a few long moments.  
  
“So good,” Jared moans. “More…”  
  
Jensen doesn’t make him ask twice.  
  
He pulls out then pushes back in, falling into a rhythm right off the bat. They move together like they’ve been doing this for years – being so compatible and so close as friends has left them easily in perfect sync with each other – and Jensen regrets that they didn’t work this out years ago. It hurts a little, knowing that this was there along, that _Jared_ was there along, and he didn’t have it. But that’s okay, they have it now, he has Jared now, and they’ll have it for the rest of forever.  
  
Jared pushes back, meeting him thrust for thrust, muscles flexing beautifully beneath sweat-slick skin. He begs breathlessly for _more, harder, deeper_ and Jensen gives him whatever he asks for, whatever he needs. Jared’s shaky arms give out and he collapses against the mattress onto his chest, the change in angle hitting the perfect spot inside him and he cries out.  
  
Jensen drapes himself over Jared’s back, pounding into him for all that he’s worth, hips stinging slightly when their skin connects. Jared turns his head and they meet somewhere in the middle in a messy, off-center kiss. “ _Jensen_ ,” Jared whispers, eyes locked together.  
  
Jensen feels it too. Whatever it is, Jensen feels it just the same. “I know, baby,” he whispers back.  
  
He braces his palms on the mattress and pushes in deep, mouthing at Jared’s shoulder. Jared mewls and pushes back, grinding against Jensen and the tingling at the base of his cock is a surprise. He focuses on what his instinct is telling him, his wolf screaming and scratching inside his brain. He pulls out and thrusts back in a few more times, then pushes deep, grinding and circling his hips, then repeats the process all over again. Jared is whining and moaning, flexing his hips back, working with Jensen as best as he can to get them both there.  
  
His knot begins to swell, the pressure almost too much, pushing against the base of his brain, tingling the base of his spine. Pushing back into Jared is getting more and more difficult so he stops thrusting, pushes in as deep as possible and _grinds_. The extra flesh expands the rest of the way quickly, leaving him dizzy and breathless. He tries to pull back but the knot is fully formed and catches against Jared’s rim, tying them together.  
  
Jensen’s orgasm is nearly painful. He moans hoarsely, loud and long, as his cock twitches, his knot pulsing, the liquid warmth of his release mixing with Jared’s slick. He keeps coming long after he normally would’ve stopped as a human, his cock jerking and twitching and spurting out a few ropes of come every couple of seconds.  
  
He opens his eyes – didn’t even realize he’d closed them – and Jared is watching him awkwardly over his shoulder, love and so many other emotions swirling in his eyes. Jensen leans down and kisses Jared’s shoulder, his neck, the side of his lips, before dipping his head and biting down on the crook of his shoulder.  
  
Jared cries out, his inner muscles clenching and fluttering, nearly milking his knot and Jensen realizes with a start that Jared came without a hand on him. In the next second his brain and heart expand then explode with _Jared_. He can feel everything, Jared’s thoughts, his feelings, all his emotions. He unclenches his jaw and looks down at his mark, almost the exact same as the one he bares on his shoulder from Jared. He laps at the trickle of blood then nuzzles under Jared’s jaw.  
  
Jared’s trembling beneath him and Jensen is still coming – the spurts coming every few minutes now – and they’re tied tight. Jensen tucks in close and tips them to the side, arms instantly wrapping around Jared’s shaking body. “How long?” he asks, barely recognizing his own voice.  
  
“Twenty, thirty minutes,” Jared replies softly. “It’ll be longer durin’ my heats.”  
  
Jensen hums and presses a kiss to the back of Jared’s neck, nosing through the sweat-damp, messy waves of his hair. Jared is quiet but Jensen can _feel_ him, knows that he’s okay, just processing everything. But there’s one thought that keeps repeating in the back of Jared’s thoughts on a loop. Jensen smiles and hugs him closer, kissing whatever skin he can reach.  
  
“I love you, too,” he whispers.  
  
Jared glances at him over his shoulder, blushing prettily. “Guess I was thinkin’ that kinda loud, huh?”  
  
Jensen grins and kisses the corner of his lips. “Just a little. But it’s okay. I like hearin’ it.”  
  
“I do, y’know,” Jared murmurs.  
  
“I know, baby,” Jensen snuggles them impossibly closer together. “But feel free to keep tellin’ me.”  
  
Jensen may not have ever thought that this would happen to him but he honestly can’t be sorry that it did. His life will change, there’s no doubt about that. But as far as he’s concerned, the best change has already happened.


End file.
